Boxing: Lonely four hold NZ boxing hopes

CANBERRA - Four New Zealand boxers will fight for Olympics Games places in the final session of the Oceania championships in Canberra after winning their semifinals.

Three Aucklanders - super-heavyweight Angus Shelford, welterweight Daniel Codling and lightweight Ramil Abubot - will confront Australian opponents, while Christchurch heavyweight Garth da Silva will meet Samoan Pauga Lalau.

Under Oceania rules, the winners of each bout will go to the Games and the loser will miss out.

The dreams of seven other New Zealanders ended with losses. Super-heavyweight Star Tauasi, light-heavyweight Liam Hall, middleweight Lance Bryant, light-welterweight Harley Edmondson, lightweight Kalolo Fiaui, featherweight Jojo Tipace and bantomweight Michael Newton all missed out.

New Zealand coach John McKay was most confident about the chances of da Silva. Lalau is a recently transformed light-heavyweight so will find it difficult to match the power of the New Zealander..


If da Silva wins, he will then have to walk clean from tests he was required to take after a December testosterone reading breached guidelines.

- NZPA